[Air-L] Workshop: MEDIA PRACTICES AND CULTURAL PRODUCERS

[Sigurjón B Hafsteinsson]

***PLEASE CIRCULATE*****

MEDIA PRACTICES AND CULTURAL PRODUCERS
EASA Media Anthropology Network Second Workshop
Barcelona, Spain, November 6-7, 2008

The workshop addresses media practices and the arenas of cultural
production in the context of the "new media" landscape. In broad terms,
the workshop will inquire into the leading theoretical and methodological
perspectives for doing anthropological research on digital mediated
practices and their implications for the understanding of people's
interaction with media. The aim is to explore the circulatory flows of
media practices and in particular, how digital technology use is changing
media culture, cultures of media circulation and the very definition of
cultural producer.

Anthropological and ethnographic studies of media have been largely
focused on analyzing reception of media products (television, radio, press
and film) and media consumption related to domestic appropriation of
technologies. There is also a wide body of research devoted to the study
of the political dimension of alternative and indigenous media. However,
there has been a separation between media and Internet studies, and
between the analysis of media reception and practices of self production,
such as family photography or home video. Current digital media practices
urge scholars to examine self production contents and media flows from a
broader perspective that cross-cuts divisions between public and private,
media corporative products and people releases, home production and
cultural industry, political activism and domestic affairs. The workshop
aims to become a locus for discussing innovative theoretical and
methodological approaches that deal with such interwoven practices of
media production and consumption.

The workshop will address questions like: how is self production entering
circulatory matrices of media and power? How does cultural production
itself become a practice of reception or consumption? What are the
implications of understanding audiences as cultural producers? Do new
media practices redefine the role of cultural producers? Are self
production and content sharing new cultural forms of media production?
What are the cultural implications of people's media productive practices?
Rather than an uncritical celebration of people's empowerment, this
workshop encourages exchange of research experiences about ways of doing
ethnographic research by following social networks and the circuits of new
media practices.

Key note speakers

Elizabeth Bird (University of South Florida)
Don Slater (London School of Economics)
Dorle Drackle (University of Bremen)
Nick Couldry (Goldsmiths, University of London)

Coordinators

Elisenda Ardèvol
Open University of Catalonia

Sigurjon Baldur Hafsteinsson
Coordinator of the European Association of Social Anthropologists Media
Anthropology Network

Organization Committee in Barcelona

Begonya Enguix
Edgar Gomez Cruz
Adolfo Estalella
Studies of Humanities Universitat Oberta de Catalunya

Gemma San Cornelio
Toni Roig
Studies of Sciences of Information and Communication Universitat Oberta de
Catalunya

Call for "research in progress" presentations

The workshop will include presentations and a poster session. Please if
you are interested in presenting your research about such topics, send
abstracts (500-800 words) to mabcnworkshop(at)gmail.com (please replace
(at) with @).

The deadline for submissions is 17 May 2008. Submissions will be reviewed
by the organizing committee, and will be selected for a paper presentation
or for the poster session. Notice of acceptance will be sent by 17 June.

This event is funded by a conference grant from the MEC and the UOC. Funds
are available to cover travel costs for researchers whose submissions are
selected for presentation at the workshop.

Registration

Due to the limited number of places available, please register in order to
take part in the event.

Registration fee: Euro 80 (Euro 60 students) Coffee breaks and one cold
lunch is included
Registration until 17 of July
For registration and further information please contact
mabcnworkshop(at)gmail.com (please replace (at) with @).

Venue

Drassanes
University of Catalonia (UOC)

http://www.media-anthropology.net/events.htm